Time.
In 1939, as part of the Federal Works Administration projects that were going on at the time, a new school was built in my hometown. The school housed grades Kindergarten through 12, with a student population of under 1,000. The facility was state of the art, built with art deco touches and made use of some amazing architectural decisions, including marble in the lobby, an impressive staircase and gorgeous wood work in common areas such as the library, principal’s office and the like. The building was annexed in 1956 with every effort to maintain the architectural integrity of the original building in the addition. Aside from slight changes in then pattern in the terrazzo floor in the hallways, the annex is a natural extension of the building.
I’ve mentioned before that my interest in synchronized time, which is part of a keen interest in “systems” (roads, airports, power lines, computer networks, telephones, etc.), was started in that art deco building built in 1939 when I discovered that all the clocks were connected together, despite the fact that while most were square and part of a wooden case with a speaker, others were round and some were more modern looking (in the annex). The clock system collection in our home marches on today, despite the fact that all of the clocks were discarded by school districts as being outdated and based on old technology.
Master bathroom clock from 1940
Having these clocks wired through the house, all advancing on the minute with a tick-tick in unison, can be a little odd for folks that visit and aren’t used to the noise. The clocks in the bedroom areas are the quietest ones we own but they are still quite audible. When I mention that I might swap out the clock in the master bedroom with a quieter one Earl talks me out of it, stating the he can’t sleep with the minute impulse sound. When guests visit for an overnight stay I usually disconnect the clock in the spare bedroom.
Master bedroom clock from the early 1920s
The simple but persistent technology in these clocks, technology dating back the 1880s, reminds me of a time when the United States took pride in its manufacturing prowess. “Back in the day” we had a lot of quality goods made right here at home. Solid, well-crafted, reliable things that would last a long time. Shiny and new didn’t matter; sturdy and long-lasting were the goals in the early to mid 20th century. We made things to last. We took pride in our work.
Guest bedroom clock from 1939
In 1969, the student population out grew the school building and its annex and a new high school was built on the other side of town. The new high school was built to modern specifications. There was no marble, no grand staircase. Classroom walls were painted over cinderblocks. Large embossed numerals denoting room number were nowhere to be found; numbers were painted on molding around the door. The clocks, while tick-ticking once a minute, were made by a different company, oddly placed in some rooms and not as reliable. The clocks in the 1969 building failed before the clocks in the 1939 building did. There was no pattern on the hallway floor as there was no terrazzo to be found. The school was adequate and met the expectations of the populace in the 1960s. When I went to that high school 20 years later there were leaks in the ceiling on the second floor. The stage lighting panel in the auditorium caught fire during a production of “South Pacific” but it was quickly extinguished. The auditorium chairs were replaced not long after I graduated in 1986. The whole building just felt more “plastic”.
Jamie’s bedroom clock from 1941
When these clocks wired throughout the house tick-tick to indicate the passage of another minute, I’m occasionally reminded of the days of old when the country seemed to be a little more solid. Admittedly, societal norms were not kind to society as whole but forward progress was inching ahead. Presidents acted presidential, there seemed to be a general sense of local community and our country made things. Solid things. Things that would stand the test of time.
I’ve lain awake at night for the majority of this month, the tick-tick of time moving on in the background, wondering what lies ahead for the country. I’ve tried to muster up a positive outlook. I look for the brightness but my dreams when I sleep are plagued with darkness. The future feels plastic. The foundation feels crumbled. Past changes in presidents have felt like that change in the pattern in the hallway terrazzo. The hallway is still there and the pattern is similar but familiar. I feel like the hallway has come to an end and no one has built a staircase to go to another level.
But time continues to march on.
Disappointing.
I just committed the ultimate sin against Apple by opening my three-month old MacBook Pro Retina and expecting the screen to come to life so I could be productive. To accomplish my objective of using the computer, I wiggled my fingers on the trackpad, I stabbed at a few keys and waited a few moments. I then closed the lid and opened it back up, hoping something in my computer would awake so I could use my computer because, after all, “It Just Works”.
After about 60 seconds of desperation, I held down the power key to force the computer to shut down and then powered up from scratch. Once logged in, I was reminded that I turned the computer off in an inappropriate manner and was asked if I wanted to restore my session. Historically, an answer to the affirmative has led to a round-robin of reboot gaiety, so I opted to just start from scratch.
I know this is First World Problem, but I have to say that I am rather disappointed in my latest MacBook Pro. This computer has been plagued with many quirks. For example, something prevents my name from rendering properly at log in (as seen in the screenshot above). Is it a cosmetic issue? Possibly, but cosmetic issues in the world of Mac are usually a symptom of an issue lingering under the covers.
My computer reliably wakes up from Power Nap or Super Slumber or whatever it’s called these days about 50% of the time that I try to use my computer. The close cousin of Unix that powers macOS is known for its long stretches of computer uptime, the amount of time that a computer can go without needing to reboot, restart, power cycle, etc. I’m lucky if my MBPr goes from sunrise to sunset.
The primary reason that I find this all disappointing is because when I purchased this computer, as a replacement to my three-year old MacBook Pro Retina that was stolen from my hotel room during a work trip, I purchased the top-of-the-line MacBook Pro Retina that was available at the time. I have the biggest hard drive, the most RAM, the fastest processor, etc. that was available in a laptop from Apple as of July 2016. The fact that I sank all this money into a computer and that “It Just Works” is a complete fallacy with this machine is very disheartening to me.
It’s not like I’m asking the computer to do things outside of the Walled Garden. I use iCloud services. I surf on Safari. I use the Apple-provided applications whenever possible because I like the idea of “It Just Works”.
When I fire up Apple’s “Photos” app my laptop takes on the persona of an Airbus A380 ready for departure. The fans blast so loud that I’m sure it can be heard by the neighbors, and remember, this is the maxed out laptop of its time.
The little gimmick of your Apple Watch unlocking your computer works about 45% of the time. When it does work I’m left staring at a “Please wait…” message on my screen when in reality I could have typed my password in half the amount of time that my watch and my computer had a conversation.
Now that I’ve typed that last paragraph I’ve decided to just turn off that feature and see what that does.
While out in the world I’ve noticed more Microsoft Surface Pro ultrabooks being used by folks. I have to admit that I’m very intrigued by the Surface Pro but moving to a Microsoft environment scares the beejeesus out of me. I’ve tried Windows 10 and it seems to be sort of cobbled together and I’ve read enough about the security implications of key logging, traffic monitoring, etc. that I really don’t want to go down that road. These are the same reasons I don’t want to switch to a Chromebook and I’m too tired to provide the care and feeding that a Linux laptop requires.
The truth of the matter is, the amount of mediocrity that passes as “It Just Works” from Apple today is still probably the best experience a computer user can get, we’ve just come to accept mediocrity as a new gold standard. When marketing runs the show the results can be disastrous. I’m sure that will be proven once again in 2017 in the political arena, but that’s a whole other blog entry unto itself.
So here I am trying to be my best in a world of low expectations. God help us all.
Cynical?
I was driving home from working in a nearby office yesterday when I stopped at the Clifton Springs Service Area on the New York State Thruway. I needed the bathroom break, I wanted to stretch my legs and I was in the mood for an unsweetened iced tea from Starbucks. There was a chance that I could satisfy the sweet tooth I was feeling as well.
As I made my way through the parking lot, looking for a place to park, I noticed a man standing a space looking quite despondent. Nearby was a run-down car of foreign manufacture. The trunk was up, even though it was raining. The man had a wandering gait. I parked nearby and made my way into the building. I noticed the man had started approaching another motorist going to his car but thought better of it and went back to the spot near the broken-down car. My attention to this was casual and by the time I was in the building I had forgotten all about it.
Armed with an unsweetened iced tea and an oat bar from Starbucks, I was walking back across the parking lot when the same man approached me. It was raining harder.
“Hey, would you be willing to trade a case of Gatorade for some gas money?”, he asked.
I shook my head, murmured an apology to the negative (I don’t need that much Gatorade when I have unsweetened iced tea) and walked to the Jeep. As I got in the Jeep, I looked back and saw that he had sat down in the empty spot next to his car. The trunk was still open. The rain prevented me from determining if he was crying or not. In the background I could see the woman in the passenger seat with her head on her hands in a despondent pose.
I pulled out my wallet and took out some money. I went back out in the rain and walked over to the man sitting in the parking space and gave him the cash. It would be enough for him to put a decent amount of gas in his car.
“Here, take this. Keep the Gatorade”, I stammered. He thanked me several times as I walked back to the Jeep.
I did this without hesitation once I made up my mind to give the man money, but there was a hesitation as the cynic in me worried about being scammed. I wondered how someone could get to that point in their life that he professed to be, stuck at the Clifton Springs Service Area with no way to put gas in the car. Fleetingly I wondered how someone could go through life asking for handouts.
And then I put all that cynicism aside and decided that whether this was the right situation or not, I needed to be better about trying to make the world a better place. And that’s when all hesitation disappeared and I approached the man to tell him to keep his case of Gatorade.
I don’t know if I was scammed. Honestly, I don’t care. Whatever the reason he had for asking a stranger for money, I hope that he is in a better place today.
Sometimes we just need to pay it forward with no questions asked.
Donate.
Invest in our future. Donate where you can.
- Natural Resources Defense Council. NRDC works to safeguard the earth—its people, its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends.
- The Trevor Project. Founded in 1998 by the creators of the Academy Award®-winning short film TREVOR, The Trevor Project is the leading national organization providing crisis intervention and suicide prevention services to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and questioning (LGBTQ) young people ages 13-24.
- The Latino Legal Voice for Civil Rights In America. Founded in 1968, MALDEF is the nation’s leading Latino legal civil rights organization. Often described as the “law firm of the Latino community”, MALDEF promotes social change through advocacy, communications, community education, and litigation in the areas of education, employment, immigrant rights, and political access.
- Propublica. ProPublica is an independent, non-profit newsroom that produces investigative journalism in the public interest. Our work focuses exclusively on truly important stories, stories with “moral force.” We do this by producing journalism that shines a light on exploitation of the weak by the strong and on the failures of those with power to vindicate the trust placed in them.
- Planned Parenthood. In October 2016, Planned Parenthood turned 100 years strong. Planned Parenthood was founded on the revolutionary idea that women should have the information and care they need to live strong, healthy lives and fulfill their dreams — no ceilings, no limits.
Choices.
Several women I know have been very vocal in their decision to vote for Trump. These particular ladies are from middle America, range from early middle age to late middle age and are white. They want to see change in the country and so they voted for that change by casting their vote for Trump.
I don’t quite get that.
You see, while on the campaign trail, Trump said many times that he would work to overturn Roe v. Wade. He actually said that he thought women that had abortions should be punished in some way.
I have more respect for women than that. Apparently, I have more respect for women than some women have for themselves. And honestly, that’s rather sad to me.
Look, I am sharing my opinion from the cheap seats. I will never be in the position to father a baby much less having to decide on whether to continue a pregnancy. I get that and I can only assume that it is the most heart-wrenching decision a woman can make. In my eyes, terminating a pregnancy is the wrong choice 99% of the time. When the subject was first approached on television, during an early episode of “Maude” in the 1970s, the main character decided to have an abortion because she was pregnant late in life and she and her husband thought it was the best decision for them. Honestly, I don’t agree with their decision of termination but the truth of the matter is that it’s not my decision to make. I believe that women should have the right to that choice.
Women that voted for Trump, who has said that he will work to overturn Roe v. Wade, voted to negate the very right that they have enjoyed since Roe v. Wade was decided. I find that to be selfish and honestly, kind of weak. It’s like they’re saying, “I don’t trust myself to make this decision, the government should make it for me.” Is that what they really want? My gut tells me no. If they’re voting for Trump for other reasons, well, then they’re knowingly denying the same rights they’ve had since 1973 from future generations of women. You can’t say that you want your daughters and granddaughters to grow up to be strong women and then vote for a man that wants to take the right to choose away from them. There’s a disconnect there and I just don’t get it.
I like to think that the women I know are smarter than that. But for the past week I’ve decided that I don’t really know the people around me all that well. I’ve been embracing my loner tendencies big time since the election.
I will probably continue to do so.
I may not agree with the choice a woman makes but I don’t really think it’s any of my business. A woman should be able to do what she wishes with her body.
We should not be giving the government the horsepower to make that decision. We are stronger than that.
Memories.
I lived in the small city of Jamestown from 1987 to 1988 and from 1990 to 1991. This little city sits near the southwestern corner of the state and is home to a couple of famous people, including Natalie Merchant and the group 10,000 Maniacs, but probably more famously, nearby Celoron is birthplace of Lucille Ball.
The city plays up its connection to Lucy in a big way, with many areas of the downtown area devoted to Lucy. This is a development since my days of living there; back in my day there was hardly any mention of Lucy in the area. A few bawdy stories from the natives, but that was about it. One of the bright spots of Jamestown is that, despite the downtown being situated on the side of a fairly steep hill, the downtown area is still quite walkable. Walkable cities are wonderful. More cities need to adopt this and move away from Urban Renewal blunders of the 60s and 70s.
I’ve passed through Jamestown on a couple of occasions over the years but yesterday I drove all over the place, looking at mobile homes I lived in near the Pennsylvania border, going by my old apartment high up on the hill by the airport and the like. The city seems to be in better condition than when I lived there in the late 80s and early 90s. Things seemed a little brighter.
Passing through there made me realize how much I’ve changed in nearly 30 years. I still knew my way around and I felt comfortable getting from point A to point B while driving the area, but I’ve done a lot of growing up since my Jamestown days and it feels great. I definitely have no desire to ever live there again but maybe I’ll pass through again in the future.
One of the interesting things about that part of New York State is that with it being 400 miles from what folks thinks of as “New York”, it has absolutely nothing in common with the Big Apple aside from the state designation of a postal address. Jamestown feels like a midwestern town. Many of the residential streets are still made of brick. The pace is slower. The accent is (thankfully) completely different. Natives say “pop”. I think because of its distance from the focus of New York State, many of the roads are in really rough shape. Driving on a nearby expressway in the Jeep at 55 MPH nearly knocked my Wrangler apart; I had to slow down to keep the Jeep on the road from all the patch pavement laid helter-skelter along the roadway.
Small wonder I saw a huge number of Trump/Pence signs and never saw one sign for Clinton/Kaine.
It’s not that Jamestown is rabidly anti-anything, at least based on my experience, but it’s more that Jamestown, much like the rest of rural America is looking for change.
Maybe they’re just sick of feeling forgotten.
Security.
With the upcoming changes in Administration (basically, everything) coming up in the next couple of months, I’ve accordingly kicked my online paranoia ways up a notch. I’d like to share the additional security measures I’m taking to make sure my online presence is safe.
A couple of weeks ago I received word that my credit card number had been stolen again. This was disheartening because I take many measures to make sure I keep my financial safe. I use Apple Pay whenever possible, as Apple Pay uses a “bogus” credit card number during the transaction, never revealing my real number. I keep my cards safe in my wallet, I never write down the number and I always make sure I have a secure connection when I’m entering my transactional data for online purchases. Since my credit/debit card is the one used for our family’s monthly recurring payments (online music, iTunes, etc), it’s out there much more than the other cards in the family. Nevertheless, my card number was stolen and I was issued another card earlier this month. I am keeping track of every site where I enter my card number.
I have added a couple extra layers of security for my online presence:
- I now use a VPN, or Virtual Private Network, service whenever I’m away from the house. My service of choice is PrivateTunnel (https://www.privatetunnel.com). There are free options available if you want to try them out. Basically, a VPN encrypts your network traffic from Point A to Point Z. This makes it more difficult for others to sniff and log your network traffic when you’re on a public access point. My first and foremost rule, regardless of where I am (home, cell service, whatever), is that I am using PrivateTunnel whenever I am entering financial data online. There is a yearly subscription model that’s pretty affordable.
- I now use Boxcryptor for my “sensitive” Dropbox activity. If you’re not familiar with Dropbox, it’s a service that maintains copies of your files in your Dropbox folder in the cloud and seamlessly syncs them with all of your devices. If I put ReadMe.txt in my Dropbox folder in my Mac, I can access it from any other computer (using a web browser) or grab it from my iPhone, iPad or any other computer I have registered with the service (Mac, Windows, Linux). So I had a Linux computer, the contents of my Dropbox folder would be the same on all three computers with little effort from me. The issue is, the security is a little weak for my tastes. Boxcryptor is a service the encrypts the data in specified folders within the Dropbox (or similar iCloud Drive) environment. Dropbox is storing encrypted data, not regular data, which makes it nearly impossible for others to access without your password. Like PrivateTunnel, Boxcryptor (https://boxcryptor.com) is available with a pretty reasonably subscription model.
- I have instituted stronger, dissimilar passwords for all my accounts. They all use special, upper case and numeric characters, and all are at least 15 characters in length. My password for my Boxcryptor vault is 26 characters long! Remembering these passwords can be a bit of pain so I use 1Password (https://1password.com/) from AgileBits. Earl uses the same program. My passwords are synced amongst my devices and the software makes it wicked easy to remember my passwords, use them when necessary and keep them secure. My only struggle with the software is to remember putting my passwords in the app and/or letting the app recommend passwords for me. After 35 years of having to remember passwords, it’s difficult for me to not remember them and rely on a software product. I highly recommend some sort of password management system for everyone so that we all use stronger passwords that are difficult to crack.
- Last, but not least, I am evaluating a new email service called ProtonMail (https://protonmail.com). ProtonMail uses encryption to store your email (similar to Boxcryptor explained above, but applied to the actual mailbox on the server) and if you exchange email with another ProtonMail user it’s automatically encrypted end to end. I’m still exploring this service but so far I’m encouraged by what I’ve seen.
I’ll admit that I’m completely paranoid when it comes to being safe and secure online. The idea of people sharing accounts or email addresses or whatever completely boggles my mind and makes me a bit crazy. I believe in preaching about computer security and sharing my knowledge when I can.
Stay safe, be secure and happy surfing!
Protest.
I needed to see US citizens exercising their right to free speech. I wanted to see people speaking out. I sought to feel the tempo of the country. I drove to Manhattan for the second night of protests outside of Trump Tower.
The tone was peaceful but determined. The most aggressive people I noticed, and mind you I know my experience was not a scientific measure by any means, were Trump supporters yelling, angry and explosive back at the protestors. “Get jobs!” “Our money feeds you!” “You’re just a fag!” At the time I was just standing there observing and have to admit, it’s been years since someone called me a name like that, but I can confirm that it still hurts but at 48 it like water on a duck’s back.
Chants included “Immigrants are welcome here”, “Donald Trump has got to go”, “Pussy Bites Back” and more. I’d roughly guess that there were between one and two thousand folks around Trump Tower. Trump supporters were very scarce. One man was in a Nazi soldier uniform. That was not a pleasant sight to see.
We are so far away from unity. I can’t help but think if Secretary Clinton was president (and Trump had won the popular vote) we’d have the same scenario of protestors, just with a different cast of characters.
I left after a couple of hours, appreciative of the fact that the Constitution allows for this type of protest. We live in a great country, but it is far from being a united country.
Patriot.
Earl and I sat together in my office and watched Secretary Hillary Rodham Clinton deliver her Concession Speech from New York. I really needed to hear Secretary Clinton’s voice. I needed to hear a positive message. Last night I had slept for a total of 2 1/2 hours. This morning, after shedding tears in bed (something that I’m really not that keen on sharing, but I strive to be honest when I write), I dressed in all black and made my way downstairs for breakfast and to get to work. I have been surprisingly productive at work today. Losing myself in my work has given my mind a rest. I still have an incredibly persistent headache.
As I watched the poll results last night, while monitoring Twitter and Facebook all the while, I couldn’t help but feel emptiness, despair, rejection, but honestly the hardest emotion I felt was betrayal. To me it seemed like the American People had decided to betray the American way of life. Facebook, something that I tried really hard to give up but realized that it was the only way I was keeping touch with my bloody blood relations, had all sorts of mean spirited, negative vitriol flying by. It was particularly disheartening to see relatives on the in-law side, women no less, absolutely giddy about seeing Hillary defeated. Words like “Killary” and hash tags like “#LockHerUp” were appearing all over the place. Secretary Clinton will never be the President of the United States. The continuance of such negative behavior smacks of insecurity, projection and guilt. Donald Trump has said that he will ramp back the rights of LGBT Americans. Seeing bloody blood relations encourage this, despite their professions of being fully supportive of who I am and my marriage and my chosen family, felt like betrayal. Once I was dressed in black, shed a few tears and had a couple hours of sleep, I decided that I could absolutely handle Secretary Clinton’s defeat and that I would do what I could do to keep America strong and make it stronger. What I will not tolerate, glance over or sweep under the rug is gloating, ridiculous claims of proven lies as fact or keeping company with anyone that engages in that kind of behavior. It is obvious that they don’t need “the whole me” in their lives and I certainly don’t want to be around them. I welcome a hearty, intelligent political debate, but I will not tolerate disrespect and I will certainly not keep company with those that choose to disrespect me.
President-Elect Trump has a large task ahead of him. I have absolutely no idea what the future brings. I hope that with maybe just a few speed bumps along the way that we will be a stronger country and be better for it when another Presidential election plagues our country in 2020. I really hope that someone, anyone in Washington will come to the center to where the vast majority of the American Populace resides and will speak to us. I have a lot of trepidation that this will ever happen, but I will never lose hope. I will always respect the office of President of the United States and now that President-Elect Trump is headed to the Oval Office, I am anxious to see what he does. I have feared that if he became president that he would be the last President of the United States. I desperately hope that I am wrong.
Secretary Clinton’s words inspired me this morning and were a brighten beacon in a very dark day. Though I definitely don’t see eye to eye with her on several subjects, I believe that she was the best candidate for this election. I think she would have built upon that which we have now and I believed in her as President. The majority of Americans agree with me, as defined by the results of the popular vote. I hope that I will be able to shake her hand someday and thank her for her incredible commitment and achievements on behalf of the entire country. Until then, I share the transcript of her final speech.
Thank you, Secretary Clinton. May your light continue to shine as a beacon for all of us.
Thank you.
Last night, I congratulated Donald Trump and offered to work with him on behalf of our country. I hope that he will be a successful president for all Americans.
This is not the outcome we wanted or we worked so hard for, and I’m sorry we did not win this election for the values we share and the vision we hold for our country.
But I feel pride and gratitude for this wonderful campaign that we built together –- this vast, diverse, creative, unruly, energized campaign. You represent the best of America, and being your candidate has been one of the greatest honors of my life.
I know how disappointed you feel, because I feel it too. And so do tens of millions of Americans who invested their hopes and dreams in this effort. This is painful, and it will be for a long time. But I want you to remember this: Our campaign was never about one person or even one election. It was about the country we love — and about building an America that’s hopeful, inclusive, and big-hearted.
We have seen that our nation is more deeply divided than we thought. But I still believe in America –- and I always will. And if you do, too, then we must accept this result -– and then look to the future.
Donald Trump is going to be our president. We owe him an open mind and the chance to lead.
Our constitutional democracy enshrines the peaceful transfer of power, and we don’t just respect that, we cherish it. It also enshrines other things –- the rule of law, the principle that we’re all equal in rights and dignity, and the freedom of worship and expression. We respect and cherish these things too — and we must defend them.
And let me add: Our constitutional democracy demands our participation, not just every four years, but all the time. So let’s do all we can to keep advancing the causes and values we all hold dear: making our economy work for everyone, not just those at the top; protecting our country and protecting our planet; and breaking down all the barriers that hold anyone back from achieving their dreams.
We’ve spent a year and a half bringing together millions of people from every corner of our country to say with one voice that we believe that the American Dream is big enough for everyone — for people of all races and religions, for men and women, for immigrants, for LGBT people, and people with disabilities.
Our responsibility as citizens is to keep doing our part to build that better, stronger, fairer America we seek. And I know you will.
I am so grateful to stand with all of you.
I want to thank Tim Kaine and Anne Holton for being our partners on this journey. It gives me great hope and comfort to know that Tim will remain on the front-lines of our democracy, representing Virginia in the Senate.
To Barack and Michelle Obama: Our country owes you an enormous debt of gratitude for your graceful, determined leadership, and so do I.
To Bill, Chelsea, Marc, Charlotte, Aidan, our brothers, and our entire family, my love for you means more than I can ever express.
You crisscrossed this country on my behalf and lifted me up when I needed it most –- even four-month old Aidan traveling with his mom.
I will always be grateful to the creative, talented, dedicated men and women at our headquarters in Brooklyn and across our country who poured their hearts into this campaign. For you veterans, this was a campaign after a campaign — for some of you, this was your first campaign ever. I want each of you to know that you were the best campaign anyone has had.
To all the volunteers, community leaders, activists, and union organizers who knocked on doors, talked to neighbors, posted on Facebook – even in secret or in private: Thank you.
To everyone who sent in contributions as small as $5 and kept us going, thank you.
And to all the young people in particular, I want you to hear this. I’ve spent my entire adult life fighting for what I believe in. I’ve had successes and I’ve had setbacks -– sometimes really painful ones. Many of you are at the beginning of your careers. You will have successes and setbacks, too.
This loss hurts. But please, please never stop believing that fighting for what’s right is worth it. It’s always worth it. And we need you keep up these fights now and for the rest of your lives.
To all the women, and especially the young women, who put their faith in this campaign and in me, I want you to know that nothing has made me prouder than to be your champion.
I know that we still have not shattered that highest glass ceiling. But some day someone will -– hopefully sooner than we might think right now.
And to all the little girls watching right now, never doubt that you are valuable and powerful and deserving of every chance and opportunity in the world.
Finally, I am grateful to our country for all it has given me.
I count my blessings every day that I am an American. And I still believe, as deeply as I ever have, that if we stand together and work together, with respect for our differences, strength in our convictions, and love for this nation -– our best days are still ahead of us.
You know I believe we are stronger together and will go forward together. And you should never be sorry that you fought for that.
Scripture tells us: “Let us not grow weary in doing good, for in due season, we shall reap, if we do not lose heart.”
My friends, let us have faith in each other. Let us not grow weary. Let us not lose heart. For there are more seasons to come and there is more work to do.
I am incredibly honored and grateful to have had this chance to represent all of you in this consequential election. May God bless you and god bless the United States of America.
Hillary
